Judging Me Is Not Your Job

It seems there are people out there who choose to follow me on Facebook for the soul reason of judging me.  If you fall into that category I have to say I'm pretty sure that is NOT your job.  It is God's job to judge me and He certainly doesn't need to be micromanaged.  He is VERY capable of managing on His own.  God has many years of experience and is technically the only one with the right.  For many years I did not share my views, beliefs or opinions even though  I have a right to those beliefs just as all of you have rights to yours..  I've always tried to be respectful of the beliefs of others and when needed agree to disagree on certain points.  I have been married for over twenty-four years to a person that doesn't always see things the way that I do.  It's okay.  We respect one another and have no need to try to conform each other.  We have our own  minds which is how it should be.

 I spent a lot of years playing the part of the chameleon, the ostrich and the golden retriever.  I wanted to fit in, avoid conflict and be loved by everyone.  Constantly working to gain the approval of others is both impossible and exhausting. There are so many more constructive things to do with my time.  Conflict is something that I still try avoid when possible, but conflict helps us to learn and to grow.  As long as we are living we should be learning and growing.  Sitting back thinking we know it all, judging those who we believe don't know it all and thinking that a narrow mind is a good thing are harmful to ourselves and others.

If I were a political person I would most likely be a Democrat who leans more towards Liberal views than Conservative ones.  I was given the gifts of empathy, a big heart, an open mind and a lot of love.  These are wonderful gifts that can sometimes be painful because this world is full of self-centered people with closed hearts and minds who hoard their love and dole it out to only those who they deem worthy.  I'm not wired that way.  God does do the wiring.  He created us as unique individuals and bestowed free will upon us. My free will and the freedom awarded to me by the country that I live in has made it okay for me to be who I am and not be ashamed of it.

We chose to raise our children in a loving environment that allowed them to be who they are as individuals.  Our four children are completely different in many ways and each has their own path. Though they may choose to keep some aspects of their lives private, for the most part my children share almost everything with me. I have respected their opinions and decisions.  I have made myself open and available to them.  I am not saying that we made all of the right decisions in parenting or that raising our children has been harmonious.  We have learned lessons and grown together as a family.  Mistakes have been made which we own up to.  Our children are all adults now.  We learn from one another.  They have fresh ways of looking at things that I haven't always considered.  I enjoy my time with each of them and am proud of who they have become regardless of how society views them.  It is true that two of my children are living with significant others who they are not married to.  As consenting adults, this is their right.  I have no power to stop them and no right to judge them.  They are making their way in the world the best way that they know how and are learning valuable lessons about life daily.  They don't need my opinions.  They need my love, support and respect.

My family knows that I believe in God, in Jesus, in Angels, in Ghosts, in gender equality, in freedom to love on another regardless of age, race, sex or gender, in Gay rights, in the power of positive thinking and a long list of other things.  They don't agree with all of my beliefs.  They shake their head at a few.  They love and respect me though.  They let me be who I am just as I let them be themselves.  I am not perfect, I am not always right, I do have a good heart and I do believe that love, respect and kindness are essential elements in all relationships.  God loves me.  He knows me better than anyone.  What I do, what my family does and how we choose to live are all known and seen by God.  He doesn't need anyone reporting to him.  He has all of the facts.  The facts He has are true and not skewed by those who view my life through their own filter~a filter laced with their opinions, beliefs and world views.

Though I am sure there are many verses in the Bible that some of you would like to throw at me that will prove I am a sinner bound for eternal damnation.   This is one of my favorite verses.  To me it tells us that there are things in this world that no one really knows or understands.  We can have all of the opinions we want, but until we are face to face with God we will never have all of the answers:

Love
…11When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things. 12For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known. 13But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Love is how I choose to see God.  Love is how I choose to view others.  Love is the filter that I put over my personal lens.  If you cannot accept who I am.  If my Democratic, Gay Rights, Liberal views offend you, then please quietly hit the unfriend button.   I don't need your barbed reasoning or your opinions on my life.  I just need to be surrounded by those who like to lift people up, not drag them down.   If you feel that judging others is your job, you may want to rethink your career choice, unless of course you are a judge.   In that case, judge me only if I'm brought before you in  your court.